It is intended that the application of the buffer yards, screening,
and landscaping standards set forth in this chapter will reduce the
visual and environmental impacts of any future use or parking lot
on neighboring uses.
A.
Vegetation within buffer yards.
(1)
Any existing trees within the required buffer yard that are a minimum
of six inches in diameter at breast height (dbh) in accordance with
American Nursery and Landscape Association standards shall count as
required trees within the buffer yard. At no point, however, shall
any existing trees and required trees be separated at a distance greater
than the distance specified in the required buffer yard.
(2)
All trees required to be planted within the buffer yard shall be
a minimum of 2.5 inches in diameter at breast height (dbh) in accordance
with American Nursery and Landscape Association standards and shall
be planted in accordance with accepted landscape conservation practices.
All required trees shall be a minimum of six feet in height at the
time of planting as measured from the ground adjacent to the planted
tree to the top of the tree.
(3)
It shall be the responsibility of the landowner and/or developer
to assure the continued growth of all required landscaping and/or
to replace the same in the event of freezing, drought, vandalism,
disease or other reasons for the discontinued growth of the required
trees, shrubs and bushes.
B.
Specific buffer yard requirements.
(1)
Buffer Yard A.
(b)
No uses, buildings or structures, including, but not limited
to, accessory structures, parking spaces, access drives and lighting
devices may be located closer than 35 feet from any front, side or
rear lot line; provided, however, that if the width of any such buffer
yard would exceed more than 10% of the width or depth of the subject
lot as it existed as of the effective date of this chapter, measured
along a perpendicular line running from the relevant side or rear
lot line, then the size of the buffer yard shall be established through
the following formula:
[1]
On a lot with a width or depth of greater than 350 feet, the
buffer yard for either the required front or the rear yard shall be
10% of that minimum dimension on that particular side of the lot.
The buffer yard for the yard not selected of these two shall remain
the minimum requirement of 35 feet. The buffer yards for the side
yards shall remain the minimum requirement of 35 feet. In no event,
however, shall the side or rear buffer yard be less than 25 feet except
that access drives may be located in the front buffer yard or other
buffer yard if required by the City or Borough's Subdivision
and Land Development Ordinance,[3] as amended.
(c)
Buffer Yard A shall contain two rows of planting. Each row shall
consist of a mixture of 30% deciduous and 70% evergreen trees and
a maximum spacing of 20 feet apart, measured from the vertical center
line of adjacent trees.
(d)
In addition to the above-noted required tree spacing, a row
of lower level evergreen shrubs or hedges shall be planted or earth
mounding shall be constructed in the buffer yard which shall provide
a year-round visual screen capable of acting as a barrier to light
beams emanating from the headlights of vehicles. These lower level
shrubs, hedges or mounds shall be a minimum of four feet in height.
The length of an individual mound shall not be greater than 30% of
the lot line to which the mound is adjacent. A variety of heights
within and between mounds are recommended.
(2)
Buffer Yard B.
(b)
No uses, buildings or structures, including, but not limited
to, accessory structures, parking spaces, access drives and lighting
devices, may be located any closer than 25 feet to any front, side
or rear lot line except that access drives may be located in the front
buffer yard or other buffer yard if required by the City's Subdivision
and Land Development Ordinance,[5] as amended.
(c)
Buffer Yard B shall contain a single row of planting which shall
be comprised of a mixture of 30% deciduous and 70% evergreen trees.
These trees shall be spaced 20 feet apart as measured from the center
of the trees.
(d)
In addition to the above-noted required tree spacing, a row
of lower level evergreen shrubs or hedges shall be planted, or earth
mounding shall be constructed in the buffer yard which shall provide
a year-round visual screen capable of acting as a barrier to light
beams emanating from the headlights of vehicles. These lower level
shrubs, hedges or mounds shall be a minimum of four feet in height.
The length of an individual mound shall not be greater than 30% of
the lot line to which the mound is adjacent. A variety of mound heights
are recommended.
(3)
Buffer Yard C.
(b)
No uses, buildings or structures, including, but not limited
to, accessory structures, parking spaces, access drives and lighting
devices may be located any closer than 10 feet to any front, side
or rear lot line except that access drives may be located in the front
buffer yard or other buffer yard if required by the City's Subdivision
and Land Development Ordinance,[7] as amended.
(c)
This ten-foot buffer yard shall contain a row of planting which
shall be comprised of a mixture of 30% deciduous and 70% evergreen
trees. These trees shall be spaced 20 feet apart as measured from
the center of the trees.
(d)
In addition to the above-noted required tree spacing, a row
of lower level evergreen shrubs or hedges shall be planted, or earth
mounding shall be constructed in the buffer yard which shall provide
a year-round visual screen capable of acting as a barrier to light
beams emanating from the headlights of vehicles. These low level shrubs,
hedges or mounds shall be a minimum of four feet in height. The length
of an individual mound shall not be greater than 30% of the lot line
to which the mound is adjacent. A variety of mound heights are recommended.
(4)
Buffer Yard D.
(a)
The primary purpose of this buffer yard is to reduce the potential
negative visual impacts of parked vehicles in two abutting parking
lots located within 10 feet of a shared property line not along a
public right-of-way.
(b)
The five-foot buffer yard width shall contain a row of plantings
comprised of deciduous and/or evergreen shrubs.
(5)
To maintain an adequate separation of uses, Table 501 provides the
minimum buffer yard standards required.
|
Table 501: Buffer Yards
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Use
|
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
|
35'
|
25'
|
10'
|
5'
| |
|
Multifamily Residential
| ||||
|
Adjoining single-family
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining multifamily
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining any industrial
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining primary roadways
|
X
| |||
|
Commercial and Institutional
| ||||
|
Adjoining single-family
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining multifamily
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining any industrial
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining primary roadways
|
X
| |||
|
Industrial
| ||||
|
Adjoining Any residential
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining any industrial
|
X
| |||
|
Adjoining primary roadways
|
X
| |||
C.
Conflict between buffer yard and yard requirements. When the width
of a required buffer yard is in conflict with the minimum yard requirements
of this chapter, the greater distance shall apply. The landowner and/or
developer shall adhere to the buffer yard planting requirement regardless
of what the yard requirement is.
D.
Existing structures in buffer yards. In instances where an existing
building or structure houses the principal use of the lot, and is
located within any required buffer yard, a buffer yard of not less
than the minimum distance from the existing structure to the lot line
shall be required. This reduced buffer yard width shall apply only
to the yard area upon which the existing structure encroaches. If
the existing building or structure is located within the required
buffer yard on one side of the building or structure, the required
buffer yard as determined by Table 501, Buffer Yards, of this chapter
shall apply on all other yard areas. All planting requirements shall
be adhered to regardless of the buffer yard width.
E.
Stormwater management facilities within buffer yards. Stormwater
management facilities and structures may be maintained within a buffer
yard, but the existence of such facilities or structures shall not
be a basis for a failure to meet the planting requirement.
A.
Applicability.
(1)
No new parking lots shall hereafter be constructed or used unless
landscaping is provided as required by the provisions of this article.
(2)
No parking lots shall be expanded, moved or removed and/or reconstructed unless the minimum landscaping required by the provisions of this article is provided for the property to the extent of its alteration or expansion, but not for the entire property unless required in § 350-27.
(3)
No use shall be changed to another use for which this article requires
additional parking over and above that required for the previous use,
unless vehicular use area perimeter landscaping as required by this
article is provided for such additional parking. The provisions of
this section shall be effective regardless of whether or not new construction
is necessary to meet the parking requirements for the new uses. Where
the previous use had no required parking, perimeter landscaping shall
be provided for the entire vehicular use area serving the new use.
Interior landscaping shall not be required where only the use of the
property is changed and no new addition, expansion, or exterior construction
or reconstruction is proposed.
B.
Perimeter landscaping.
(1)
Property line landscape buffers between adjacent land uses shall be provided in accordance to the requirements spelled out in § 350-27A of this article.
(2)
Any parking lot that is adjacent to a road or public right-of-way
shall provide a landscaping area width based upon the following parking
lot size:
(3)
Grass or ground cover shall be planted on all portions of the landscape
area not occupied by other landscape material.
(4)
Landscape plantings that are planted within the sight triangle near
intersections shall conform to the following standards:
(5)
In all cases where significant natural vegetation exists, there will
be limits of clearing/grading areas established to protect and preserve
these natural areas. These natural areas will not be disturbed by
the installation of any structures, utilities, storm and sanitary
sewers, water lines, sediment and erosion control traps, stormwater
management systems or signage. Existing landscape material which is
proposed to be used to fulfill landscape requirements shall be shown
in the required plan, and measures taken to protect these areas from
disturbance during construction shall be identified.
(6)
Trees required as a part of the perimeter landscaping adjacent to
a public right-of-way landscaping may be placed on the right-of-way
adjoining such vehicular use area when approved by Council. Such trees
shall be in addition to any street trees which may be required by
the subdivision regulations.
(7)
In any parking lot perimeter landscaping area there shall be four-foot
minimum distance to all trees from the edge of paving where vehicles
overhang.
(8)
Parking lots shall include side and rear yard perimeter landscaping
that include a continuous row of shrubs no less than 3 1/2 feet
at planting and one canopy shade tree planted every 40 feet on center.
C.
Interior landscaping.
(1)
For any new parking lot containing a minimum of 6,000 square feet
of area or 15 or more spaces, interior landscaping shall be provided
in addition to the previously required perimeter landscaping. Interior
landscaping shall be contained in peninsulas or islands containing
a minimum area of 160 square feet having a minimum width of eight
and 1/2 feet and a minimum length of 18 feet. There shall be a minimum
distance of four feet from the edge of paving to the base of all trees
which may overhang parked vehicles. The minimum landscape area permitted
shall be 10% of the parking area. Each island or peninsula shall be
enclosed by appropriate curbing or a similar device at least six inches
wide and six inches in height above the paving surface (wedge curbing
is acceptable), unless this is in conflict with an approved best management
practice, in which case the design of the approved stormwater plan
shall apply.
(2)
Where a parking area is altered or expanded to increase the size
to 6,000 or more square feet of area or 15 or more parking spaces,
interior landscaping for the entire parking area shall be provided
and not merely to the extent of its alteration or expansion.
(4)
Maximum contiguous areas for interior parking lot landscaping. In
order to encourage the required landscape areas to be reasonably distributed,
no single required landscape island shall be larger than the following:
(5)
Minimum plant materials. A minimum of one shade tree for each five spaces of provided parking shall be required. The remaining area of the required landscaped area shall be landscaped with shrubs or ground cover not to exceed two feet in height. [See also § 350-28C(6), Shade trees in parking areas.]
(6)
Shade trees in parking areas.
(a)
Parking areas that are required to be paved must be shaded by
deciduous trees (either retained or planted by the developer) that
have or will have when fully mature a trunk at least 12 inches in
diameter.
(b)
Each tree of the type described in Subsection C(6)(a) shall be presumed to shade a circular area having a radius of 15 feet with the trunk of the tree as the center, and there must be sufficient trees so that, using this standard, 20% of the vehicle parking area will be shaded.
(c)
No paving may be placed within eight feet (measured from the center of the trunk) of any tree retained to comply with Subsection C(6)(a), and new trees planted to comply with Subsection C(6)(a) shall be located so that they are surrounded by at least 200 square feet of unpaved area in a manner that will not encroach upon the projected dripline.
(d)
Parking areas shall be laid out and detailed to prevent vehicles
from striking trees. Vehicles will be presumed to have a body overhang
of three feet six inches.
(7)
Interior landscaping for parking areas shall be installed and continuously maintained by the owner according to the requirements contained in § 350-28 of this chapter.
(8)
Landscape material type and quality shall be in conformance with the requirements of § 350-28 of this chapter.
(9)
Whenever any property is affected by these parking area landscape
requirements, the property owner or developer shall prepare a landscape
plan for approval by Council.
All service structures shall be fully screened, except when
located in an industrial zone. Service structures in an industrial
zone shall be fully screened when located within 100 feet of any zone
other than industrial. For the purposes of this article, service structures
shall include propane tanks, dumpsters, air-conditioning units and
condensers, electrical transformers and other equipment or elements
providing service to a building or a site.
A.
Location of screening. A continuous planting, hedge, fence, wall
or earth mound shall enclose any service structure on all sides unless
such structure must be frequently moved, in which case screening on
all but one side is required. The average height of the screening
material shall be one foot more than the height of the enclosed structure,
but shall not be required to exceed eight feet in height. Whenever
a service structure is located next to a building wall, perimeter
landscaping material or vehicular use area, landscaping material of
such walls or screening material may fulfill the screening requirement
for that side of the service structure if that wall or screening material
is of an average height sufficient to meet the height requirement
set out in this section. Whenever service structures are screened
by plant material, such material may count towards the fulfillment
of required interior or perimeter landscaping. No interior landscaping
shall be required within an area screened for service structures.
B.
Protection of screening material. Whenever screening material is
placed around any trash disposal unit or waste collection unit that
is emptied or removed mechanically on a regular basis, a fixed barrier
to contain the placement of the container shall be provided within
the screening material on those sides where there is such material.
The barrier shall be at least 18 inches from the material and shall
be of sufficient strength to prevent possible damage to the screening
when the container is moved or emptied. The minimum front opening
of the screening material shall be 12 feet to allow service vehicles
access to the container.
